Fervor (42 page)

Sam knocked on Royce and Elliot’s door, and found the pair of them in there again deep in discussion. Sam was almost offended that Elliot was spending so much time with the mean-spirited boy – although he was not exactly a boy anymore. Royce’s transformation was almost complete, and once again, he out-sized Sam by a fair margin. He actually made a strikingly handsome young man, with sharp-cut features, a lean but muscular build, and a maturity that now matched his challenging stare. Nonetheless, Elliot had heard many of the tales regarding the various conflicts between Royce and the different members of the house-family, Sam in particular. The Finder could not comprehend why the technician had taken such an interest in Royce, knowing what he knew.

Without saying anything, Sam placed the bag of requested items on the bed and turned to go.

“
Sam – wait,” Elliot said. As usual, the technician tended to speak aloud whenever he communicated through the connection, because his presence there was so faint. “I was hoping you could give us some details about your little excursion to the High Barrens. Royce here has already shared with me everything that he remembered from the time that he spent there.”

“
I’ll tell you, but I don’t see why it would matter. We’re leaving tomorrow,” Sam replied, a little wary at the inquiry.

“
It matters to me, believe me. Did you see any documentation, any records perhaps?” Elliot demanded.

Sam shook his head.

“
I didn’t see much, honestly. I didn’t go through any of the doors below, I just looked through them. There was a large classroom there, but I’m sure Royce told you about that already. And there was a sizeable laboratory of some type. There may have been records in there. I have no idea. I would have thought they would have brought any paperwork with them, wouldn’t they?”

“
You didn’t go in? But you are a Finder. I would have expected the compulsion to be overwhelming,” Elliot said with dismay.

“
There are some things stronger than the compulsion to find. Like fear, the powerful kind, for one. I saw those odd ones, the other Littles. I was scared to death, and no curiosity was going to keep me there. I’m sorry, Elliot. I guess I can’t help you,” Sam sighed.

“
No – no. You’ve helped me enough already, Sam. Don’t feel bad. Knowing what to look for there, knowing that they have another hover there, even if it is in disrepair, well that means something. As far as the documentation goes, I was just grasping at straws. They probably took everything with them when they left. I was being hopeful.”

Sam found the technician’s comments strange. Did he plan on making a stop at the High Barrens before they left Fervor? Sam could not bear the idea. He didn’t want to go anywhere near that place ever again. The terrifying encounter with the odd ones aside, he didn’t want to risk getting another glimpse at Francis either. Even considering the fact that the tide had been coming in and going out, with the way the body had been tangled in the seaweed, chances were it would still be there. Sam shivered reflexively. He left the room before the conversation could trigger any more unpleasant memories.

When Sam entered the room that he was now sharing with Sarah he found that she was already sprawled on the bed, lost in slumber. Curling up in his chair, he watched her sleep for a little while and was glad that she did not look as distressed as she would have been, had it not been for the distraction afforded by the Controls. They had replaced the hover in occupying her time, keeping her from dwelling on the latest events, and giving her something more positive to focus on. Trying to focus on the positive himself, the fact that they would be finding freedom tomorrow, Sam dozed off.

In the morning, Elliot, Nathan, and Fiona climbed into the hover and set off on one final test ride. Sam noted the hover had a different sound than the ones that he was accustomed to. The standard hovers on Fervor were almost silent, with only a slight low rumbling drone as they travelled from one location to another, but Elliot’s hover was different. It had a high-pitched whine to it as it moved — a sound that was almost painful to hear. Perhaps because it had been reassembled from ill-fitting bits and pieces. It also gave off a sporadic popping sound, almost like a little hiccup, every few seconds. Sam hoped that it was no indication of how well the vehicle would function.

“
They’re taking it out along the beach, to avoid being spotted by any of the others,”
Sarah informed him.
“We’re to bring our things, and meet them there, after we eat. They already have their stuff with them.”

Sam felt almost too excited to stomach any food, but he knew it was going to be a lengthy trip, so he forced himself to swallow his breakfast. He and Sarah were both seated at the table when they heard a somewhat familiar whine outside.

“
I thought they were going to meet us at the beach?”
Sam remarked. Curious, that the hover had lost the popping noise that had made it seem distinctive earlier. He mentioned that to Sarah as well, who was glancing out the window with a startled look on her face. Her eyes remained glued to the scene outside, her face blanching.

“
That’s not Elliot’s hover,”
she murmured.

As Sam joined her by the window, he could see the bullet-like form outside, but there were no dark patches, no marring of its surface anywhere. Sarah was right. It was not Elliot’s hover. The Finder’s heart dropped, and he immediately felt nauseous.

“
It’s them...it’s the scholars. They sent someone. What are we going to do?” Sam breathed.

Sarah sent out a panicked warning to the others still in the house, and then she gestured towards the window behind them.

“
Let’s go out the back. We push at Nathan, Fiona, and Elliot – tell them to stay away, and that there is trouble. We’ll let them know that we’ll meet them at the beach just as we planned, and that if we don’t show, that they should leave without us. I hope the Controls can save themselves.”

The pair scrambled through the window and dropped down to the ground below, tossing their packs out before them. Sarah squealed as she landed funny on her ankle, grimacing in pain, and Sam grabbed her and dragged her into the bushes. They lay there panting, and stayed hidden there when they heard voices several feet from where they had come to a stop.

“
Can you fix your ankle?”
Sam asked.

Sarah nodded. She was already clutching at her leg, attempting to mend the damage. Sam knew there would be delays, even if she was successful, since it always took more time for her to concentrate and fix her own injuries.

“
I’ll contact the others. You just focus on repairing that,”
Sam suggested. He started searching, trying to ignore the voices that sounded much too close for comfort.

Nathan was the strongest of the Bigs in the connection, and therefore had always been the easiest to find, so Sam went looking for him. It took longer than it would have if Sam had known their intended path and timing, but with a mind as familiar as the Watcher’s, Sam did manage to root him out eventually. The Finder pushed frantically at Nathan’s walls, which were not as thick as they had been prior to Elliot removing his gift. He forced his way through on the first attempt.

“
They’re here, Nathan! They’re here! Don’t come back to the house, whatever you do,”
Sam exclaimed, relieved to be making contact.

“
Whoa – calm down, little buddy. What are you talking about?”
the young man asked.

“
The scholars, they sent somebody to investigate. They’re here at the house!”

Sam tensed up as the voices came worryingly close. He was thankful that they were not part of the connection. He could shout at Nathan through their link without any fear of being detected.

“
They’re at the house? You sit tight and we’ll come back for you...”
Nathan began.

“
No! Stick to the plan! We made it out of the house and we’re hiding in the woods. We’ll meet you on the beach, but you should turn back now. There isn’t much time, and they may find us if we don’t hurry,”
Sam insisted. There was a pause and a faint and garbled whisper that Sam could not make out.

“
Elliot wants to know if the Controls are with you,”
Nathan imparted. Sam realized that they were far enough away, that with Nathan’s walls and the distance involved, Elliot’s weak presence in the connection had become distorted so that he was not able to hear him properly. That left Nathan playing messenger.

“
No, they aren’t. What does it matter? They can fend for themselves, and the scholars would be sending someone to locate you, and maybe the rest of our family, not them. Royce might have something to be concerned about, but the others should be fine.”

Sam relaxed a little, noticing that the voices were moving away again.

“
Elliot says that it’s important. We’ll hurry back
,” the Watcher assured him.

“
We should be there shortly, as soon as Sarah finishes fixing her leg. She sprained her ankle when we dropped from the window but she’s mending it right now.”
Sam hesitated, reluctant to think what he wanted to say next.
“Nathan, don’t wait for us long. They may catch us, and we don’t want them catching you, too. If we aren’t there when you get to the meeting point, or we don’t arrive soon after, be prepared to leave without us. If nothing else, you and Fiona can make it to the mainland, and serve as a voice for the rest of us on Fervor.”

“
Nonsense, Sam. Get a move on. We’ll see you there.”

Nathan was firm on this, much to Sam’s dismay. He broke the link and glanced over at Sarah. She had apparently finished with her leg, and was peering through the bushes.

“
They went around to the other side of the house,”
she remarked anxiously.
“Royce let me know that he and the other Controls made it out of the house. I told him that you were warning Nathan to keep away, and that we were still planning to meet the hover at the beach. He actually seemed happy that we got out safely.”

“
We better go,”
Sam responded.
“The sooner we get off the island the better. They’re not going to like the fact that we screwed up their experiment, and I think that Elliot will be in even more trouble for sabotage.”

The pair got to their feet and began to sprint through the woods towards the planned meeting point on the beach, ignoring the branches and thorns that caught at their clothing and occasionally snagged their hair. They had to slow in order to cross a boggy patch, and that was when Sam noticed the disturbing whine, and a bullet-like shadow pass overhead. They both froze, and he looked at Sarah with wide eyes.

“
Do you think they saw us?”
he thought fearfully.

“
I hope not. Maybe it won’t matter. We’re almost there.”

She was right. Seconds later, they stumbled out of the brush and into the clearing where the trees gave way to the shore. It was only a quick run from there to where they would be meeting the others, but a stretch that offered no cover. Sam took the lead, dashing for the rocks that lined the beach. He was half way there when he heard an odd buzzing noise, saw a flicker of bright light, and then found himself unable to move, as if something were restraining him. He twisted his head as far as his new limitations would allow. It looked like he was wrapped in some bizarre netting, but instead of being knotted from rope or twine it was instead woven from thin crackling strands of light. Sarah screamed through the connection, diving back into cover, but her loud mental cry carried, likely echoing through most of the minds in the general area.

“
Sam! What was that? What’s happening?”

It was Nathan again, but he was much closer now. He had readily picked up on Sarah’s expression of alarm, but the girl was in a full panic and her thoughts were somewhat incoherent. The Watcher had chosen to turn to Sam for answers as a result.